Hebrews 12

1 - Therefore let us also, seeing we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us,

2 - looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising its shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

3 - For consider him who has endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, that you don't grow weary, fainting in your souls.

Hebrews 1:1-3 - God, who at sundry times and in divers
manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
Hath in these last days spoken unto us by [his] Son, whom he
hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the
worlds; Who being the brightness of [his] glory, and the express
image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his
power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the
right hand of the Majesty on high;

Hebrews 8:6 - But now hath he obtained a more excellent
ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better
covenant, which was established upon better promises.

Hebrews 11:1-3 - Now faith is the substance of things hoped
for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders
obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the
worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are
seen were not made of things which do appear.

Hebrews in The New Testament - A Brief Overview

Painting of a Hebrew Scribe

Introduction to The
Book of Hebrews

Brief Summary.Hebrews. The Main theme of the book of Hebrews
can be found in the opening verses. Jesus Christ is clearly
greater than anything that the Old Covenant had produced. Jesus
is the
great high priest, the eternal mediator between God and man who
never stops mediating, and is the perfect fulfillment of all
prophecies and types and shadows pointing to the Hebrew Messiah
within the Old Covenant. The book of Hebrews
unveils Christ as the One who is greater than each of the types
and shadows that were pointing to him in the Old Covenant.
Moses was the great lawgiver, but Christ was the perfect
fulfillment of the law. The high priest in the Old Testament
offered sacrifices each year, Jesus the eternal high Priest
offered himself once and for all. The promises contained in the
Old Covenant were for a season, but the New Testament is
built on better promises that are forever written on men's hearts.

Summary of The Book of Hebrews

Purpose. The main purpose of the epistle is to
establish Christianity as being superior to the Law. The writer
exalts the superiority of Christ to angels, to
Moses and Joshua, and to the Levitical high-priesthood. The book
of Hebrews also makes a contrast between the tabernacle and its
sacrifices and the sacrifice of Christ. The write strongly warns
the Hebrew Christian to remain faithful to the Christian
religion and its principles and to separate from Judaism, which
had served its purpose and which was about to lose their
rituals, sacrifices, and Temple.

Audience. The writer titles his epistle "To the Hebrews"
and every chapter and verse of the book is clearly designed to
instruct and encourage those who were Hebrew in blood and had
become followers of Jesus Christ. It appears that the Temple was
still standing at the time this epistle was written because it
is often alluded to.

Author. Unknown, evidence points to Paul. There has been
much controversy regarding the authorship of the book of
Hebrews. Some say that it was written by Barnabas, others say it
was Luke, or Apollos. The author of the book does not state his
name, but it is definitely Pauline in style. A greater number of
scholars have attributed this book to Paul than any other
author. The writer refers to "our brother Timothy" (Hebrews 13:23) and "they of Italy"
(Hebrews 13:24). It also appears that
the writer was imprisoned, from his request for prayers that he
might be restored to his readers. Paul was imprisoned several
times and this could refer to any of those. The
only absolute conclusion is that which Origen
expressed: "God only knows who wrote the Epistle to the
Hebrews."

Date. The book of Hebrews was probably written shortly
after AD 60.

Place Written. It says in Hebrews 13:24 "They of Italy salute you"
and this phrase indicates
that the letter was written from Italy. It is probable that the
Epistle was written near his second Roman imprisonment, about
60-62 AD.

Outline of the Book of Hebrews

Christ Greater Than the Prophets and Angels - Chapters 1-2
Christ Greater Than Moses and Joshua - Chapters 3-4
Christ Greater Than the Aaronic Priesthood - Chapters 5-8
Christ's New Covenant Greater Than the Old - Chapters 8-10
Faith in Christ Greater Than the Law - Chapters 11-13

The Name Jesus In Ancient Hebrew Text
"Yeshua" in First Century Hebrew Text. This is how the name "Jesus"
would have been written in ancient Hebrew documents. The four letters or
consonants from right to left are Yod, Shin, Vav, Ayin (Y, SH, OO, A).
Jesus is the Greek name for the Hebrew name Joshua or Y'shua which means
"The LORD or Yahweh is Salvation".

Hebrews Maps and Resources

Map of the Roman Empire (14 A.D.) - This map reveals the
Roman Empire during the time shortly after the birth of Jesus,
in 14 AD at the time of the death of Augustus. The order which
prevailed in this extensive empire, the good military roads, and
the use of Koine Greek as the general language of culture
throughout the area were among the factors which multiplied the
rapid spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. (Color Map)

Map of Paul's First Missionary Journey (48 A.D.) - This map
reveals the areas in Asia Minor where Paul visited in his first
missionary journey. Around 48 AD, in the springtime, Paul and
his companions Barnabas and Mark were sent on a mission from the
church in Antioch. This would be the first of Paul's Missionary
Journey's. (Color Map)

Map of Paul's Second Missionary Journey (51 A.D.) - This map
reveals the areas in Asia and Greece where Paul visited in his
second missionary journey. Paul re-visits a couple cities in
Asia, one of which was Lystra where he was stoned and left for
dead a few years earlier. He later has a vision that leads him
over to Greece and Paul and his companions travel and minister
in various cities in Greece (Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea,
Athens and Corinth. Later Paul returns to Ephesus and finally to
Caesarea and Antioch. (Color Map)

Map of Paul's Third Missionary Journey (54 A.D.) - This map
reveals the areas in Asia and Greece where Paul visited in his
third missionary journey. On Paul's third missionary journey he
returned to the cities he had first visited on his first
missionary journey. During this time he decided to remain in
Ephesus for about 3 years, and this city was the main focus of
his activities and an important Christian community (Acts 19).
(Color Map)

Map of the New Testament World - This map reveals the
"Nations" within the ancient world during the first century
A.D., the time of the New Testament. The map includes the areas
of Israel, Asia, Greece, and Italy. (Color Map)

Map of New Testament Greece This map reveals the cities
within Greece in the ancient world during the first century
A.D.,The map includes the principal cities of Greece like:
Athens, Corinth, and Thessalonica, and provinces like Macedonia
and Achaia. (Color Map)

Map of New Testament Asia - This map shows the cities within
Asia Minor during the first century A.D., the time of the New
Testament. The map includes the principal cities of Asia
including Tarsus, Ephesus, and Colossae, and provinces like
Galatia and Pamphilia. (Color Map)

Many Thanks to The British Museum, The Louvre, The Oriental Institute, Dr. Amihai Mazar, Dr. Dan Bahat, Dr. Craig Johnson, Yaacov Kuc, Chuck Smith, Jim Darden, Ron Haaland, The Translators of the KJV, and many others including Jesus, the Word of God.